Serendipity
by PoppyParanoia
Summary: The guys take a break and decide to vacation in an old, Victorian manor. One night during a thunderstorm, Ryou can't sleep and meets up with Yugi. The two start talking, and they find out they've actually got more in common than they thought, including their feelings for their respective other halves. Tendershipping/Puzzleshipping. Ryou/Yugi friendship. Two-part story. R&R.
1. Wish you were here

**AN**: Well, it's certainly been a while guys. I hope you enjoy this one.

It's a two-shot, meaning it'll be comprised of two parts/chapters, the second of which I'll upload next week.

Or rather, that's _my_ definition of it ^ ^;

Also I'm using the dub names as always.

Anyway this fic is gonna be Tendershipping and Puzzleshipping, with a bit of Ryou/Yugi friendship in the mix too, especially in this first part.

Enjoy!

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**Warnings: Slash, angst, the usual.**

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_Disclaimer: Still don't own anything._

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**Serendipity**

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**Part one:**

**Wish you were here **

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Ryou sneaks out of bed at two thirty in the morning because he never really was one to sleep completely through the night.

He licks his lips and slides off of the mattress carefully and pulls a blanket off with him because the house he's staying in is old and has no heating system and he needs _something_ to keep him warm.

He begins to saunter across the hardwood floor to the bedroom exit, all the while peeking over his shoulder to make sure that Bakura hasn't awoken from him getting out of bed.

He smiles when he sees that the taller man hasn't moved an inch and still remains lying on his back with the night light shining on his face, mouth open, drooling and snoring.

But then again, Bakura's deep sleeping habits _were_ one of the reasons why Ryou got out of bed in the _first_ place. (He lost his earplugs and _really _just can't handle Bakura's raucous snoring.)

A deep breath is taken in as a faint clap of thunder sounds outside.

Plus, Ryou's always hated thunderstorms.

Bakura wouldn't wake up and he didn't want to go bother anyone in the other rooms, so he had no one to comfort him, and he was never very good at comforting himself. The only solution was to get out of bed and take a walk.

After all, there were plenty of places to explore in the old mansion, and even though it _would _be kind of creepy to be wandering around alone, in the dark, with a storm outside, Ryou thinks it would be _fun_, too.

About a week ago, Yugi called up Joey and announced that he and Yami were taking a 'guys-only' vacation. Apparently, it had gotten really "stressful" and they needed some relaxation. So they booked a gorgeous, old Victorian manor in England to stay at for a week or two. Yugi wanted to know if the rest of the guys, (consisting of Joey, Tristan, Ryou, Bakura and Kaiba) wanted to come along too.

Of course, Joey (being Joey) immediately accepted on everyone's behalf, not consulting anyone else invited, and several hours after Yugi's phone call Ryou opened his front door to an excited, bouncing Joey on his front porch announcing that they were all going on vacation and "they needed to start packing _super_ fast!"

Tristan was cool with it. His family had started to get on his nerves at home, and the break sounded nice.

Kaiba had always had a secret love for England, so he was inwardly fine with it, albeit showing discontentment on the outside at "having to be seen with you people."

Even Bakura announced that it sounded like an adequately amusing distraction from the mundanity of everyday life.

But, naturally, with everyone else okay with it, what was Ryou _supposed _to say but yes?

He accepted, albeit a bit _aggravated_.

He was kind of annoyed he'd have to leave home , and besides that, he _was _kind of a homebody in the first place, which annoyed everyone who knew him _quite_ a bit. (So he _enjoyed_ being alone and writing or painting in the quiet and didn't like to go out into town, clubs, or to his friends' houses _at all_, really. He doesn't see why everyone thinks that's so _weird_!)

Then, there was the fact he just wasn't _feeling_ well.

He wasn't sick with a cold or a virus or anything like that, per say, he just didn't feel _good_.

He felt alone, kind of lost.

Sure, he had his friends.

But he didn't have much else.

And his friends were just that—_friends_. They weren't family, and even the new puppy he just got (affectionately named Daisy) couldn't really fill the void that Ryou felt in his heart.

He has a feeling his depression shows, too.

Every time he sees the guys, Yugi or Joey will stare at him for a few moments and ask something like, "Are you okay, Ryou?"

And Ryou will just smile and nod and say he's fine.

But he's not.

He just lies to make the pit in his stomach go away because he _hates _having his friends worry about him.

He doesn't want to be more of a burden than he already is.

And the worst part is, he doesn't know how to _feel better_.

He thinks maybe his sadness is from the fact it's been about fifteen years now since his mother died and he really _does _miss her, or that he's stuck in a creative rut and can't do anything he's _really _happy with, or maybe even that he can't even find a good _book _to read! (Never before has Ryou been without a good book to read. Even if he has to re-read a book he's already read a thousand times, he's still _reading_. And now, he doesn't even feel like re-reading anything.)

He's just…he's not himself.

And he doesn't really know _when _he'll be himself again.

Quite frankly, Ryou doesn't feel like traveling or vacationing at a time when he's feeling so low.

Of course, he never actually _voices _these feelings (He doesn't want to be a burden, remember?), and only shows a hesitation to say "yes". But then Joey just gave him that _pout_ ("Joey, do you _have _to use that thing?") and those big, dark-chocolate brown "puppy eyes" and Ryou sighed with a muttered, "_Yes_, fine, I'll go upstairs and start packing now."

And it was all set.

But Ryou's feelings of frustration soon melted away because…leaving home was _all _worth it as soon as the four young men _arrived_ at the mansion.

To start, because Kaiba had decided to fork out the money for transport so he didn't have to "take a commercial airplane like some peasant" they arrived in a _helicopter_. (To which Tristan loudly exclaimed, "Oh my _God_, I _love _helicopters! Can I be pilot?" and when Kaiba said "_God_, no!" Tristan made it a point to annoy the living daylights out of him the _entire _flight to the mansion by bouncing excitedly in his seat next to him while loudly singing and humming continuously and often crying out at random things outside his window that weren't really that exciting at all like a _cloud _or a _bird_.)

The manor was so isolated that it would be too hard to get a car to drive the boys there, and from high up above, the young men marveled at the gorgeous sights around them.

Lush, fluorescent green fields dotted with bright flowers all the colors of the rainbow jumped out at them, and here or there they spotted tiny cottages or cabins and a few tall evergreens.

It was all so beautiful Ryou really _couldn't _be annoyed (but there still was that _sadness_ in his heart that wouldn't go away).

Then came the manor itself—the place they would live for the next two weeks.

Ryou, when he caught sight of the towering, elegant home, was stunned speechless.

Everything was _so _perfect and the house was _so _huge and furnished _exactly _like it would have been back in the 1800s or early 1900s, and the grounds were immense and immaculately taken care of.

Apparently, the manor was somewhat of a legend and had been owned by a prominent, wealthy family, and was often rented out as a resort sort of thing to those who could afford it.

Ryou feels so blessed to have been able to stay there.

Immediately, as soon as the guys walked through the front gardens (that held magnolia and roses and all sorts of gorgeous plants), they arrived at the long front porch, lugging their bags behind them and still kind of blown away. Joey broke the silence by pulling each and every one of them into a hug while exclaiming something like,

"This is freakin' _awesome_, isn't it?"

Inside the house, everyone went crazy with exploring and awe.

The entire three-story home (huge staircases filled Ryou's sight as soon as he walked in) was filled with beautiful, antique wood furniture, crimson, soft carpets, marble tables, lovely paintings, and probably priceless vases and other trinkets. The walls were trimmed in gold leaf or sometimes even pretty wallpaper, and engravings were all around as well.

Windows were huge, and the dining hall had a table big enough for _sixty_, let alone seven guys.

Yugi marveled the most at the bedrooms. They were enormous and held just as large beds with canopies and walkout balconies and "Oh my _God _everything is _silk_!" (He immediately called dibs on one of the biggest rooms to sleep in when they first arrived, by the way.)

The first thing Tristan noticed got him laughing. He came out of one room giggling, "Haha, the toilet handles are_ silver_," but he was _most _struck by the kitchen. It was gigantic, and he promptly began to blabber about how many _desserts _he could make in here at one time. ("Like, I could make six cakes at a time and stuff my face and then make _more_!" To which Yugi snorted, "Yeah, and you'd gain fifty-six pounds, _too_!")

And Ryou?

Ryou was wandering alone upstairs after he'd chosen his room (Well, not really _his _room, because as soon as he'd put his suitcase down on the beautiful bed, Bakura walked in and flopped down on the bedcover with _his _bag and announced, "I'm going to stay with you_._" and Ryou really couldn't argue because once Bakura has made up his mind, there's no much use changing it.) when he came upon a door.

It was big, mahogany, and had an engraving of a lion with wings. Something was also written in Latin, but he couldn't read it. Slowly, he pushed it open, and his breath was taken away.

For days after their arrival, Ryou stayed cooped up in that library, reading _everything_ he could.

He'd finally found a good book to read.

Hundreds, actually.

Most of his favorite writers were from the 1800s, so this library was a dream come true. He read essays, romances, mysteries, horror…anything.

When he first told the other guys about it excitedly at dinner the first night, Yugi smiled and announced that he had gone in the library a couple times, too, but it didn't interest him as much as it interested Ryou.

"I can barely understand half of what those guys are _saying _in those books, Ry. That's more of _your _thing."

So the library was officially "Ryou's thing". Tristan, Yami, Joey, Yugi, and Bakura all came in once or twice just to make Ryou happy by exclaiming how pretty the room was and to visit the boy as he sat on the tiled ground with his head buried in a book, not really paying attention to them as they tried to talk with him.

Ryou hasn't been more excited in the past five and a half months of his life.

That library lifted his melancholy spirits, and his suddenly cheerful demeanor has been noticed by his friends. He finds himself smiling a lot more and just being _happy_.

Ryou thinks that tonight, on his little walk, he'll go to the library.

There was a nice, thick book of English poetry he spotted the other day that he thinks might be nice to read.

The door squeaks open to his and Bakura's room, and Ryou peers his head out into the hallway.

A flash of lighting illuminates the long hall, and the giant windows cast light onto the corridor. Shadows appear here or there, and Ryou thinks the eerie silence (silence but for the rain on the roof and windows) is nice.

Quietly, he pulls the blanket closer to himself and steps out into the hall, closing the door lightly behind him.

He starts his way down the path he knows oh-so well to the precious room of books, trying not to be scared as the storm rages on outside.

When he's about halfway there, he suddenly stops.

There's music coming from behind that mahogany door.

It's faint.

It's piano.

It's _sad_.

Thunder crashes outside and Ryou frowns.

He's already had _enough _sadness, and for the first time in a long time, when he _finally _feels happy, he gets _sad _again.

He bounds over to the door to the library, light, quick, and quiet on his feet (Bakura described his running as "prancing" once, and was promptly whacked on the head with a thick book soon afterwards.)

Slowly, Ryou opens the door a little bit and peers one eye through the crack.

There on the ground, in the middle of a few bookcases and right in front of a writing desk, Yugi sits cross-legged, looking down sadly at a record case he holds in his hands.

Next to him lies an old phonograph.

The music Ryou recognized from the hallway is coming out of its speaker, squeaky and not clear, but still sad and haunting.

Lighting flashes and Yugi doesn't jump at all (Unlike Ryou.).

Slowly, so slowly, Ryou sneaks in. He quietly tip-toes towards the boy, and watches closely.

Yugi's face isn't _all _sad.

There are traces of _angry_ and _hurt_ and _frustrated _and he throws down the record case he was holding, sighs deeply, and folds his head in his hands.

Ryou stands up straight and stops in front of Yugi.

He doesn't say a word. He doesn't really know what to _say_ because he's not really used to seeing Yugi so obviously upset.

Instead, he gently walks over and sits.

He sits lightly down next to the shorter boy and takes a soft breath in.

Yugi lifts his head from his hands and stares at Ryou. Ryou stares back.

For a minute, in the storm-illuminated room, under the towering bookcases, Ryou and Yugi stare at each other. Purple and hazel watch closely, until finally,

"What are you doing up?" Yugi asks, and his voice is tired and cracks a little.

Ryou doesn't voice the fact that he immediately knows Yugi has been crying. He just shrugs, turns away from him, and whispers, "Couldn't sleep."

Yugi turns his gaze away, too, and nods. "I don't like thunderstorms, either," he whispers.

There's silence.

_CRASH_.

Thunder shakes the home, and both Ryou and Yugi visibly tense.

Ryou bites his lower lip.

"Yugi, are you…okay?" he dares to ask, avoiding the other male's gaze as he does so.

Yugi is quiet for a moment, but then he whispers,

"No. I'm not."

Ryou pulls the blanket tighter around his shoulders and swallows. "Neither am I," he says, and he feels a rush of sadness fly through him as he realizes that he really _isn't_.

The library and new books might have helped before, but now Ryou knows that the hole in his heart _still _remains.

Yugi frowns, though Ryou can't see it. "I doubt you're sad for the same reason I am, Ry," he says, quietly.

Ryou licks his lips. "Why _are_ you sad?"

Yugi leans his head back and lets it rest on the side of the desk behind him. "I like listening to these things."

He holds up a record case, picking one up from the few spread out in front of him, and Ryou reads the title:

_Piano Sonata No. 123 in G Minor._

Ryou nods. "Yes, so do I. Classical music is a great inspiration."

He tries to not be annoyed by the fact that Yugi ignored his question about inquiring _why_ he was so sad.

Yugi shakes his head. "No, not classical music. _This _kind of music," he says, and at Ryou's confused face, he points to the record player scratchily playing the vinyl disc now in it next to him. "The _phonograph_ kind of music." He pauses. "I love how it's so imperfect and perfect at the same time. It's never fully clear or loud, and sometimes it's even scratchy, but if you listen closely, it's beautiful and haunting."

Ryou envies Yugi for a split second; he put his thoughts so easily and so beautifully into words.

He wishes he could do that.

"As a matter of fact, Ryou, I think _we're _kind of like that," Yugi whispers, and then he hastily looks down at his twiddling fingers.

Ryou raises an eyebrow.

Yugi takes a deep breath in, and waits as another ring of thunder explodes outside. Then, he turns to Ryou, and he is smiling oh-so softly. Ryou feels a grin pulling at the corner of _his_ lips, as well.

"You see, Ryou, we're not the clearest, most perfect people. I know that I'm short. I know I have weird hair. I know I'm too trusting. You know that you're quiet. You know that you can get really dark. You know you confuse people. You know that you can confuse _yourself_," Yugi says, his tone soft and true, and Ryou kind of feels tears welling up at the corners of his eyes because Yugi is so _right_.

Yugi pauses, swallows, (Is he swallowing tears?, Ryou wonders.) and then carries on,

"But those things are just what make us, _us_. They don't make us any less of a person, you know?"

Ryou frowns. His brow furrows. "Of course not, Yugi. Who said they did?"

Yugi is silent.

He's crying.

Ryou bites his lower lip and knows he's said too much and just enough.

Everybody knew that Yugi and Yami were fighting. They knew it was the main reason they had this vacation.

But no one knew _why _the two couldn't stand each other all of a sudden.

Until now.

Yugi sniffles and reaches up a hand to wipe tears off of his face. He laughs a little. "God, I'm such a baby for crying."

Ryou sighs and turns away from Yugi. "No you're not," he whispers, and hopes his words help Yugi feel a _little _better, at least, because Yugi really _shouldn't_ be ashamed of crying (God knows _Ryou's_ done enough of it in the past few months.)

The boy inhales shakily, exhales, and starts speaking again, so Ryou guesses that that his words _did _help.

"Yami is _so _amazing that he can spoil his own beauty."

Ryou nods silently.

"He's confident. Gorgeous. Outgoing. Attention-loving. Strong. The polar opposite of me. And I've always been okay with that; _he's_ always been okay with that. I think that it's one of the things that has made us _finally_ get so close over the years. We realized we balance each other out," Yugi says, and Ryou turns to watch Yugi as he speaks.

Yugi takes a deep, shaky breath in. "Yami has always been there for me. Every time I feel awkward or nervous or stupid or unsure, he's always been the one to assure me I'm "amazing" or "genius" or something wonderful like that. But then, the other week…"

Ryou bites his lip. Yugi sniffles a little bit.

"The other week, Yami and I got in a fight about something. I don't even remember what it was about. Something stupid—like who ate the last of the ice cream. But somehow it spiraled out of control to us arguing about one another's personalities. And for the first time in so long, Yami insulted me. Yami yelled at me. Yami did the exact opposite of what he normally does—he made me _hate _myself."

Ryou gets the sudden urge to go and punch the offending man out.

"He told me that I was "ridiculous" and that he "doesn't know how he's managed to put _up_ with me for the past few years". And to hear that coming from _him_, the one guy that would always assure me that I was _okay_ as I was…"

Yugi suddenly stops, now bringing both hands up to his face and wiping his tears away, shaking his head quickly.

Ryou frowns. He doesn't say anything or try to hug Yugi, because he thinks that in this moment, the man just needs to _feel_. Feel his pain and his emotions without someone trying to comfort him.

So the two just sit there, wordless. The rain pounds on the roof and slides down the glass windows and the lighting flashes illuminate the almost creepy atmosphere, and the piano song still scratches background music and now there's even a violin to sing sweet, sorrowful notes back to them.

Yugi sniffles and swallows, and Ryou knows he's done crying.

Ryou adjusts himself into another, more comfortable seated position and pulls the blanket (which had begun to slide off of his shoulders) back up.

"So…what about you and Bakura?" Yugi whispers. "Is that why _you're _so sad?"

Ryou's face falls and the pit in his stomach grows heavy.

He forgot all about that.

He _forgot_ all about the fight he had with his very best friend.

Ryou lays his head back against the desk behind him and shakes his head because…

He knows that right now, as much as he doesn't want to, he needs to _remember_.

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**R&R**

**Part two should be up next week!**


	2. Dying to be him

**AN: **Hola everybody!

Thanks for the reviews for the first part. Enjoy this second and last part. Sorry it's a tad late! =)

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_Disclaimer:_

_Still don't own anything._

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**Serendipity**

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**Part T****wo:**

**Dying To Be Him**

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**_Italics_ = flashback**

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_Ryou likes the way his feet tap ceaselessly against the cobblestone walkway of the back gardens. _

_He likes the way the air is always crisp and fresh here at the manor, no matter _what_, and he likes how, when he breathes, he inhales sweet, juicy scents and his eyes take in bright, shining colors everywhere he looks._

_He pauses in his walking for a moment to just enjoy what's around him._

_When everyone arrived at the manor, they marveled at the _front _gardens. He thought _those _were immense and mind blowing._

_It wasn't until, just yesterday afternoon, when he stepped out onto his room's balcony and caught sight of the vast, seemingly endless _back _gardens did he _really _have his breath taken away._

_The grounds of the estate were filled with everything ranging from exotic blooms to classic lilies of the valley, or from the orchard of apple and pear trees on the far fields to the tricky maze of tall bushes to try and maneuver through. There was magnolia and sunflowers and lilacs and daises and when all of the guys first went out to explore the lovely sights, every single person_ _found their favorite flower, no matter how seemingly rare it was to find._

_Ryou's now taken a break f__rom reading a__ novel by in the library to clear his mind and take a stroll in the gardens._

_At the moment, he's walking through the tall maze of dark green bushes, trying not to get lost and trying to make it over to the lovely, vast orchard that he knows lies beyond the labyrinth. He starts up walking again, and takes a right turn, then a left, trying to remember the way through._

_To his dismay, the next thing he sees is a dead end._

_All of a sudden, a voice causes him to jump and he flies around._

_"Need some help?"_

_Bakura stands there, eyebrow raised, with his hands tucked in his jacket pockets._

_Ryou smiles sheepishly and lets out a nervous laugh._

_"You scared me," he explains, and then he lifts his arms up in a stretch, exhaling heavily._

_Bakura smirks a little, and Ryou listens as he walks up next to him. _

_Bakura is staring at the dead end in front of them. "Well, you clearly do need my help."_

_Ryou scoffs. "How did you know I was _back_ here, anyway? Did you follow me__?"_

_"Yes."_

_Ryou smiles at Bakura's straightforward answer and shakes his head. He takes a breath in and says,_

_"Okay, fine, I'm lost. If you know how to get from here to the orchard, please help__."_

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_Bakura actually __did __know the way to the orchards quite well (apparently, he'd studied the maze when he got bored, which was quite often, and figured out the turns to get to the grove), and the journey was short and mostly quiet with the exception of occasional small talk._

_Finally, the immense, bright green field filled both boys' panorama, and for a moment, they were silent._

_Neither of them had actually __been__ back here yet, but Ryou had marveled at the beauty from the balcony many times. And up close it was just…mind blowing._

_Ryou inhales deeply._

_He's never felt more peaceful or happy in his life._

_The field isn't completely flat. There are dips and hills and it goes on __so far__ and huge, medium, and small sized trees dot the healthy landscape. They rustle in the breeze with their blossoms and green leaves, and the sweet scent carries over to the two young men and it's __beautiful__._

_Bakura looks up._

_The sun's started to set._

_The way Ryou's standing, the sun is lowering _right _behind him, and it's shining on him in such a way that he looks like he's _glowing.

_He's smiling, and it's that _smile. _That "Ryou" smile that everybody adores._

_Bakura swallows._

_This is the most beautiful thing he's ever seen in his life._

_The field they were on is resting atop the highest hill in the orchard, so he gets a perfect view of the gorgeous landscape._

_The giant, bright orange sun slips slowly below the horizon and the sky is coated in pistachio green, turquoise, and rose pink._

_The giant mansion stands heavy in the distance, its majesty illuminated by the shadows from the dimming sunlight._

_The many trees have the light slipping through their leaves, and they each have perfect shadows beneath them, growing as the sun shrinks more and more. The entire world is bathed in a stunning tangerine-pink glow, and Ryou plops down on the grass, just sitting in awed, content silence at the sight._

_"It's breathtaking, isn't it?" Ryou smiles._

_Bakura sits by an old apple to his right, hands on his lap. His face is set on the sunset and landscape._

_"Mmm," he mutters in agreement._

_Ryou puts his gaze on his friend. Bakura feels it, and turns to look at Ryou, as well._

_The sun breaks through the tiny, pink apple blossoms that surround his best friend, and it all casts him in _such_ a wonderful light so that Ryou finds himself breathless for a little bit._

_Then, Bakura whispers,_

_"It's a bit disappointing that none of these apples are for _eating_."_

_Ryou chuckles a bit._

_"Yeah, well, maybe next time," he says, and he really _does _hope that there will be a next time. This place is far too gorgeous to never see again._

_The sun is almost completely gone now, and Bakura sighs. There's silence for a moment until—_

_"Come on, there's something I want to show you."_

_Then, Bakura's stood up started walking down the hill. Ryou blinks once or twice and feels disappointment well up inside of him. _

_He was kind of hoping this moment would never end._

_But slowly, he sits up with a grunt, stretches himself out a bit, and tries to snap back into reality._

_He scampers after his friend as soon as he can._

_Once he finally makes it to the end of the field, he sees Bakura standing at the entrance to the garden maze, hands in his pockets._

_Ryou runs up, breathing heavily._

_Bakura looks up__ and starts walking into the maze. Ryou takes a deep breath in and follows after. _

_As soon as he's standing next to Bakura, he asks, breathlessly,_

_"Where are we going?"_

_Bakura smirks. "Wait and see."_

_Ryou doesn't know if he should be excited or nervous, so to occupy his anxious mind, he looks up at the now darker sky. He sees a single star out, and closes his eyes to make a wish._

_He's not really sure _what _he even wished for in that moment._

_He thinks it was something along the lines of, "Let me be happy like this forever." Suddenly, he hears Bakura stop walking. His eyes shoot open, and he turns to his friend, eyes wide with curiosity._

_"What's wrong?" he asks._

_Bakura raises his eyebrows. "Look."_

_Ryou will never forget the first view of that garden._

_He looked forward, and in the fresh darkness of the night, his eyes took in the sight of a rose garden with the backdrop of the starry night sky._

_A large, white terrace stood in the middle of the grounds, and on it climbed vines and vines of sunshine yellow roses._

_A small waterfall-fountain rested in the corner, the water cascading out of it oh-so gently, splashing softly into the stone pool below._

_The ground itself was made of white stone, and a giant rose decorated the middle of the circle._

_Then, of course, there were the flowers themselves._

_Bushes and bushes and vines hung and grew in __e__very part of the garden, and the atmosphere exploded with the heavy, wonderful scent of the blooms._

_Soft white, gentle pink, creamy peach, hot pink, and bright yellow roses surrounded Ryou as far as he could see._

_He feels embarrassed suddenly, because there are tears in his eyes. _

_He shakes his head._

_"Bakura…how did you find—?"_

_"I've never been to the _orchard _before, but I've explored the _gardens_."_

_Ryou feels joy and gratefulness well up in his heart._

_"It's beautiful," he whispers out, and he hates himself, because his words will _never _do the beauty of this place justice._

_But the _one _thing that makes Ryou wonder a bit is that there are no _red _roses that he can see. Red roses are the most magnificent in his opinion, and he would think the gardener would have the right mind to plant—_

_"Ryou?"_

_Ryou snaps out of his trance and looks._

_Bakura stands in front of him, holding a single stem red rose. _

_Ryou stares._

_Out of all the roses Ryou has ever seen in his entire life, that is the most phenomenal one. _

_The stem is a deep, rich green, and there aren't but one or two thorns on it. A single, tiny leaf hangs near the top. The flower is huge, the petals are delicate, (Ryou can _see _their silky softness from where he's standing), and the bloom itself is the most daring, mind-blowing crimson red. _

_He can't believe its perfection._

_Bakura holds it out to him._

_"For you."_

_Ryou's mouth opens, but no words come out._

_Shakily, he reaches forward and wraps his long fingers around the stem. He pulls the gift close to his chest, and dips his face down to inhale the scent. It's rich, wonderful._

_Bakura is looking at him._

_Ryou thinks he must look like a total idiot, standing there, eyes wide in unbelievably grateful shock._

_Bakura carries on staring. _

_"I know it's your favorite flower."_

_Ryou still can't say a thing._

_Bakura continues._

_"When I first found this place, it was the only red rose I saw. I _knew_ I had to give it to you."_

_Ryou flies forward and pulls Bakura into the biggest hug he's ever given in his entire life. (He's careful not to crush the rose.)_

_Bakura returns the embrace, wrapping his arms around his best friend, and he whispers,_

_"Please, _please _tell me what's wrong."_

_Ryou feels his stomach drop._

_His eyes widen._

_His breath hitches._

_He pulls away._

_Bakura stands there, and suddenly, the rose garden doesn't seem so _perfect_._

_Ryou swallows._

_"Wh-what are you _talking_ about?"_

_Bakura walks forward and carefully reaches out to Ryou. Ryou steps back and tries to ignore how the concern in Bakura's eyes grows. _

_He doesn't even want to _think _about his _own _pain, let alone talk about it with the one person he never wants to trouble. And then, of course, to know that he's been _showing _his depression enough to worry Bakura _kills _him, because that's the one thing he's always tried so hard _not _to do._

_Bakura frowns. He starts speaking, his tone attempting comfort._

_"Ryou…I'm not stupid. I see that you're depressed, and I'll pretend to know why. But I want you to know that I'm _here _for you, okay?"_

_Ryou feels his heart pounding._

_"Don't bother."_

_Ryou's heart feels like it gets squeezed deathly hard as Bakura's expression falls in utter rejection and shock._

_But Ryou _can't_ let him worry about him. He _can't_. His friends are too amazing; _Bakura's_ too amazing. They don't deserve to be worried with the burden that is himself._

_"Bakura, seriously. I'm fine. I don't know what—" Ryou starts replying, laughing bitterly and trying to shrug it off, but all of a sudden, his best friend's face narrows into a look of pure fury, and he cuts him off._

_"Stop it, Ryou. Just shut _up_."_

_Ryou feels his breath hitch in his throat. His fingers tighten around the rose stem in his thin hands._

_"I _know_ that you're not `fine', Ryou," Bakura snaps, "Before we came here, you sat in your house all day doing _God_ knows what. You never left, and you _never_ called or e-mailed or _anything_."_

_Ryou feels the thorns cutting into his soft skin. (He savors the pain.)_

_"You were exhausted, and I _saw _your puffy eyes. You must have cried _so much _Ryou," Bakura continues, now stepping a bit closer to his friend._

_Ryou's bottom lip begins to quiver, and he knows Bakura is only going off on him like this because he _cares_, but right then and there, Ryou decides that he hates the whole "tough love" thing._

_"Your friends all saw it too! Tristan's _mom _even saw it and tried to talk to _us _to find out what was wrong with _you_ and we had to tell _her _that we had no _idea!" _Bakura shouts, leaning forward for emphasis. _

_"So we tried so hard to help you feel better."_

_Ryou feels the tears welling up in his eyes, and he's shaking._

_Bakura's face holds rage and disgust as he pauses to watch Ryou's reaction._

_"There! You see?! You're _crying _again!" Bakura yells, and now the tears _are _freely pouring down Ryou's pale cheeks. "Ryou, we have _tried_. We have _tried_. And then we get here, and the first thing Kaiba said to us is, "What's wrong with Ryou?" And then, like magic, you find the _library_, and somehow a room full of _books _can lift your spirits but not your _friends _who have tried for the past half a year to get you to smile. What is _wrong _with you?"_

_Ryou squeezes his eyes shut and hates how he the tears keep coming._

_"Today was the happiest I've seen you in _so long_. But I know I shouldn't get excited because I _know_ that you're not _really _happy, and I _know _that as soon as we go back home you'll retreat into your own world again and we'll be back to square one! So, tonight, I give _one last attempt _to help you, and you _freak _out!" Bakura stops his ranting for a moment and heaves a deep breath in, fury and adrenaline pumping through his veins._

_He pauses and feels his heart break into a million and one pieces as he watches his best friend in front of him. _

_There's nothing but the sound of Ryou's sobs as the poor boy shakes, his thin frame wracking with cries. His head is down, his hair hanging in his face, shielding his dripping eyes from view._

_His hands are still clutching the red rose._

_Bakura hesitates. _

_"I just can't stand you, sometimes, Ryou."_

_And then he walks away before Ryou can hear _his _sobs._

_The rose garden is quiet but for Ryou's sniffling and heavy, shaky breaths as soon as the one person that means more to him than anyone else in the _world_ leaves._

_Ryou _wants _to say something._

_He _wants _to look up and scream and wail and run forward and tackle Bakura to the ground and hug him and cry and sob and tell Bakura about _all_ the pain and worthlessness he's been feeling._

_He _wants_ to tell Bakura about the countless nights he's stayed up in his bed staring at the dark ceiling with tears rolling down his cheeks wondering _why_._

_He _wants_ to tell Bakura that sometimes the only thing that finally _gets _him to sleep is the thought that suicide _is _possible._

_He _wants _to tell Bakura that there have been so many nights that he just stands in front of his medicine cabinet and debates over and over whether or not he should pick up those anti-depressants and just shove them all down his throat to let it all go away._

_He _wants _to have Bakura cry with him and hug him back and tell him it's going to be okay and that he _does _mean something to someone and that he _is _loved and that he's _not _alone._

_He _wants _to run to Bakura and just let it all _out.

_But he doesn't._

_He stands there, in the middle of the beautiful rose garden, with blossoms bursting around him. He stands there like a _coward _and let's the one person he _needs _to talk to more than anyone else in the world walk away._

_The tears are still falling like a waterfall, and he's sniffling and swallowing and trying so hard to just _breathe.

_Finally, he gently looks up._

_He looks up and longs to see his best friend's smiling face, but he doesn't._

_Instead, he sees an empty rose garden, filled with ghosts of perfection. The phantoms of perfection that are slowly eating him alive. Haunting every part of his heart, soul, mind._

_Ryou shivers because he's alone with those ghosts, with nothing but a red rose blossom hanging gently in his hand._

* * *

"You're crying."

Ryou opens his eyes.

Slowly, so slowly, his hand raises to his cheek and his fingertips lightly brush the wetness that cascades in rivulets down his pale skin.

He frowns.

"I am."

Yugi swallows.

The thunder crashes outside.

The boy sighs and adjusts his position a little bit, turning away from Ryou thoughtfully.

"I'm sorry that happened to you," he whispers.

Ryou nods robotically.

"He didn't talk to me when I came back. I didn't even _see _him. I ate dinner, went up to bed, and he was already sound asleep," he tells, and the tears fall more and more.

Yugi is watching him carefully, purple eyes filled with understanding.

Ryou shakes his head slowly.

"You're my closest friend, Yugi. I've known you for half of my life. You knows me; I know you. But Bakura…"

He pauses.

"Bakura is my _best _friend. He's the best friend I've ever had. And I can't understand why I just can't let him _help _me…" The last few words of Ryou's previous sentence break as his voice comes out in a strained cry, and he lets his head fall and more tears come.

He's ashamed.

So ashamed.

Suddenly, Ryou feels Yugi close to him. He lifts his head up a bit, and looks. Yugi is smiling gently at him, and Ryou's bottom lip quivers harder.

"Ryou, you and I…we…we're different," Yugi starts softly, and Ryou lets out a sob.

Yugi's smile falls a little. "What I mean is…we're not like them. We're not like Yami or Bakura. We love them. I still love Yami after what he said to me—I always will. He's _my_ best friend. And you—you still love Bakura. So we still _love_ them, but we're not _like_ them."

Ryou stops all movement suddenly.

He suddenly understands what Yugi is saying to him.

What he hasn't really _understood _for the past year and a half of his life.

He begins talking, his voice a whisper,

"We're quiet. We like to sit at home and be by ourselves rather than go out with others and party, and because of that, we're often the most level-headed."

Yugi's smile grows.

"We're shy. But we know _exactly _what a person is like the first time we meet them. We take in everything around us."

Ryou looks up.

"We're smart. We take in as much information as we can, and we spurt it out at all the right moments."

It starts, back and forth. The two speak truths about themselves—_each other_—and as they do their smiles grow and their tears cease.

"We're unique. It makes people _think_."

"We hate the spotlight. We're humble. People love us for it."

"We hold up the ones who _long _for the spotlight. We try and make their lives as good as possible, even if that means holding pain and misery inside us because we don't want to _bother _them with it. We help them because we love and care about them, and even if they're jerks sometimes and don't realize it, they _will _accept it and understand that we'll come around in our _own _time, in our _own _way."

And in that moment, Yugi and Ryou look at each, and the _perfect_ words come out of both their lips together, and it's a beautiful sound to hear.

"We're _us_."

The record player suddenly clicks.

The piano and violin have stopped their sad song.

* * *

Bakura walks down the hallway, his anxious feet tapping against the carpeted ground.

He throws looks all around, his heart pounding, looking for one person and one person only.

"_Ooomf_!"

Two young men find themselves sprawled out onto the floor in a split second.

Bakura rubs his head and mummers something like,

"I didn't need _that _at 7AM…"

Then, the two look up at each other simultaneously, and without words, they both know that the other is feeling the _exact _same emotions and is in the _exact _same situation.

Bakura smirks.

"Watch where you're going, Yami."

Yami scoffs, and then they stand up, brushing themselves off. Bakura takes in a deep breath.

"Have you seen Ryou?" he asks, his tone going from faux-intimidating to anxious.

Yami shakes his head. "Have you seen Yugi?"

It's Bakura's turn to say no. There's silence.

Bakura looks ashamed, and Yami watches wordlessly, knowing that Bakura's going to explain soon enough.

Finally, the other male speaks, his tone soft and regretful.

"I...said some stuff to Ryou last night that I shouldn't have. I woke up this morning, and he was gone. No trace at all. No one else has seen him and I'm afraid he might have done something bad," he whispers, and at that last part, he clenches his eyes shut, trying not to imagine all the ways Ryou could have hurt himself because of something stupid _he _said.

Yami sighs. He walks over to Bakura. "Bakura, I bet Ryou's _fine_. He's probably just in the—"

Suddenly, both of their heads snap up in realization. Their dark eyes are wide, and they know _exactly_ where to go.

_The library._

As soon as they arrive, they throw open the door.

The fresh, post-storm, morning sunlight streams through the windows and illuminates the two people they were looking for so that they shine like angels or newly found treasure.

Yugi and Ryou sit in slumber, their backs leaning against the side of an oak wood desk, legs sprawled out.

Around them a record player lies, and several records or record cases are scattered about.

Ryou's blanket is wrapped as best as he could get it around both Yugi and his shoulders, and Yugi's head rests atop Ryou's as Ryou's rests on Yugi's shoulder.

Their faces are etched in peaceful sleep.

Yami and Bakura lean on separate sides of the doorway, taking in the wonderful sight, smiles on their faces.

"I went to apologize to Yugi," Yami whispers. "But I couldn't find him. Now I know where he went."

Bakura's eyes don't leave the men in the library.

"You know, we're so blessed," Yami says softly. "I think about that every day. They're so amazing, and I can't figure out how two people like _us _ended up with them. They're our better halves. I love Yugi to death, and I just want him to be happy."

Bakura nods.

"Same with me. Sometimes I don't understand him, but that's when I just have to step back and tell myself that it's just _Ryou. _He is who he is, and he really is special."

And Bakura and Yami don't notice it, but on the faces of Yugi and Ryou, two small, small smiles appear.

Ryou feels that empty spot in his heart start to fill.

* * *

**Goooosh, that was so fluffy, I was almost embarrassed writing it haha. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Don't forget to R&R =)**


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